An hour later, I arrive at the Rays gym to see quite a few guys going through their reps with the strength and conditioning team. Metal music plays through the speakers loud enough to get the blood pumping. I walk past the row of exercise bikes where a few of the defensemen are cycling.
“There he is,” Jake calls, waving me down.
As I move towards him, he hops off his bike, sweat pouring down his face.
“Hey, man. What’s up—ouch—” I cry, reeling from a hard slap to the back of the head. “What the fuck was that for?” I say, glaring at him.
Jake gets right up in my face. “What part of ‘be her friend’ did your dick translate to ‘insert here?’”
I go still staring at him, momentarily speechless. “What—how do you know about that?” I cry, eyes wide.
He just points over my shoulder.
I spin around to see Doc glaring at me. She leans against her open office door, arms crossed. I turn back around to see Jake has been joined by a very large, very broody Mars.
“When did she tell you?” I blurt, my mind reeling.
“This morning,” Mars replies. “We all woke to her panicking in our bed.”
“Panicking?” I repeat, glancing between them.
“Yeah, apparently she deflowered you in a nursery,” Jake teases.
“On camera,” Mars adds.
“I wasn’t deflowered,” I snap at Jake. “It wasn’t my first time, asshole.”
“It was your first time with Tess, and that’s what matters to us,” he counters.
I go still, my gaze darting between them. Shit, what did she tell them?
“It wasn’t their first time,” says Sanford, waltzing between them with that hitch in his step.
“What?” Jake cries, spinning to face him. “How do you know?”
“It’s written all over his face,” he replies. “I bet they’re doing it all over that bungalow.”
“Mit? helvetti?,” Mars curses in Finnish. “Did you two fuck in my sauna?”
I glance at Mars. Yeah, I’m not answering that. I like my teeth right where they are, thank you very much.
“What the hell did you two do last night?” Sanny teases.
“Nothing,” I cry, my gaze darting between them.
Sanny smirks. “Look at you, wild stallion.”
“Well, I’m not gonna kiss and tell,” I huff, crossing my arms.
“Kiss and tell?” Jake echoes. “Jeezus, Langers. Is this grade school? Are we twelve?”
“We already know you fucked last night,” says Sanford. “She told us.”
“Yeah, in a nursery, which is fucking weird,” Jake adds. “Baby Josh sleeps in there.”
“Well, let’s not split hairs,” Sanford says with a hand on his shoulder. “You blew me in a Baskin-Robbins bathroom last week.”
Jake laughs. “Oh yeah. Totally worth it.”
“What we need to know is what happens now,” says Mars, holding up a hand to silence them. “She’s ours to protect.”
“Yeah, she’s Rachel’s family,” adds Sanny. “Which makes her our family.”
“You’re in sister-fucking territory right now, asshole,” says Jake. “Which is against, like, every code in the hockey bro handbook. No moms, no sisters. You’re lucky we don’t have you in a headlock on the floor.”
“Damage that knee, and you’ll all be sleeping out on the deck chairs tonight,” Doc calls from her office doorway.
“Will you call them off?” I shout over my shoulder.
“No.”
“Answer the question, tough guy,” says Jake, giving my shoulder a shove. “What is this between you two? Is she nothing but a puck bunny to you?”
“No,” I reply.
“A convenient fuck?” jabs Sanford. “A distraction? A fun trip to cougar town?”
“No—”
“Are you gonna break her heart?” Jake snaps, shoving my shoulder again.
“Guys, I don’t even—”
“Love ‘em and leave ‘em? Eh, Langers?” Sanford says. “Is that your M.O.?”
“No,” I growl.
“Then what is she—”
“She’s everything!”
All four of them have their eyes locked on me, and my heart is suddenly racing a mile a minute. We’re doing this. Right here. Right now.
I glare around at each of them. “She’s fucking everything, alright? I’m fucking—I’m obsessed with her.” I groan, dragging both my hands through my hair.